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Mint
4 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Vietnam trade deal takes aim at back door for Chinese goods
SINGAPORE—A tariff agreement with Vietnam emphasizes one of the White House's top priorities in this frantic round of dealmaking over global trade: Slamming shut any back door routes for Chinese goods to enter the U.S. A key provision of the Vietnam deal announced by President Trump Wednesday is that goods 'transshipped" to the U.S. through Vietnam would be subject to a punitive 40% tariff, twice the 20% rate Trump said he is applying to regular imports from Vietnam. The president didn't mention China explicitly and the exact details of how such rerouting will be defined and policed are unclear. Nevertheless, analysts say the measure appears squarely aimed at making it harder for firms to use the southeast Asian nation as a staging post to ship goods to the U.S. from China while sidestepping the steep levies that Chinese imports would typically face. These provisions of the Vietnam deal show that China remains the central focus of U.S. trade policy even after Washington and Beijing reached a shaky trade truce and discussions with other partners over trade drag on. The agreement implies that other countries will also be expected to limit China's presence in their economies if they want to keep selling to the U.S. The U.S. and U.K. agreed to provisions in their recent trade pact that require the U.K. to strengthen supply-chain security, which were similarly interpreted as targeting China. 'There does appear to be a more strategic intent here by the U.S. to essentially restrict Chinese exports entering the U.S. market via the backdoor," said Frederic Neumann, chief Asia economist at HSBC in Hong Kong. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning on Thursday reiterated Beijing's displeasure at the U.S. approach when asked about the pact, saying trade 'negotiations and agreements should not target or harm the interests of third parties." Vietnam was one of the main beneficiaries of the reordering of global supply chains in the wake of Trump's first term and the tumult of the Covid-19 pandemic. Factories mushroomed around Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City as Chinese and Western firms looked for ways to diversify their production base amid the strains of the pandemic and increasing geopolitical rivalry between Washington and Beijing. For U.S. consumers, Vietnam's entry into the top rank of exporting nations brought a bounty of affordable goods, as companies including Nike and Apple expanded production in the country. Shares of both companies rose Thursday after Trump said the trade pact was agreed. Michel Bertsch, who runs a factory in Vietnam that sells baby furniture such as cribs to the U.S. and other Western countries, said the 20% tariffs will inevitably translate into higher prices for American consumers. Still, he said he thought that Vietnam would remain a top destination for manufacturing. U.S. imports from China are subject to an average tariff of 40% to 50%, giving Vietnam an edge even with a 20% tariff, though whether it can keep that advantage depends on where tariff rates settle for alternative bases such as India or Indonesia. 'We need to wait and see what tariffs will be imposed on other countries but we don't think that we will lose competitiveness," Bertsch said. As recently as 2018, the U.S. deficit in goods trade with Vietnam was smaller than its deficit with Japan or Germany and a 10th the size of its deficit with China. By the end of last year, the U.S. deficit with Vietnam had ballooned to more than $120 billion, putting Vietnam behind only China and Mexico in its share of the U.S.'s $1.2 trillion goods trade deficit. Vietnam's rise up the rankings in U.S. trade has also drawn scrutiny from the U.S. as a hub for simply rerouting China-made goods bound for the U.S. for firms wanting to dodge tariffs. Chinese exports to the U.S. were about 10% lower in the first five months of the year than the same period a year earlier as tariffs bit into direct trade between the two economic superpowers, Chinese customs data show. Over the same period, however, Vietnamese imports from China were up 28% year over year, Vietnamese data show, while Vietnamese exports to the U.S. rose 26%. Deepali Bhargava, regional head of research for Asia-Pacific at investment bank ING, said in a report Thursday there are 'strong signs of transshipment" in sectors including machinery, electrical products and insulated wires and cables. Vietnam has taken steps to crack down on such trade rerouting through tougher policing of rules of origin certification, which give customs authorities detailed information about where a product and its components were made to levy the appropriate duties. Many different types of goods made in Vietnam, including clothing, furniture and electronics, use components made in China. Exactly how the U.S. plans to determine whether a product from Vietnam would qualify for a 20% tariff or a 40% tariff isn't clear. Still, 'these provisions send a clear message to global firms: the recent fall in tariffs between the U.S. and China doesn't weaken the argument for building supply chains outside China," Capital Economics economists Mark Williams and Gareth Leather said in a report Thursday. Write to Jason Douglas at and Jon Emont at
CNBC
24-06-2025
- Business
- CNBC
Korea, India, Vietnam stand out as Asia's top growth plays
Frederic Neumann Chief Asia Economist & Co-Head of Global Research, Asia at HSBC and Tim Seymour CIO at Seymour Asset Management see EM as undervalued, with Korea, India, Vietnam standing out. China tech, like Alibaba and Tencent, remains attractive despite tensions.
Zawya
23-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Australia's new haul of Chinese online goods helps tame inflation
SYDNEY - As businesses globally fret about sky-high U.S. tariffs reviving rampant inflation, in Australia, the redirection of cheap Chinese goods is expected to provide relief for consumers and policymakers worried about stubborn cost pressures. Alibaba's Taobao and are the latest Chinese e-commerce platforms to enter the Australian market, seeking to tap into the bargain-starved country's appetite for online deals. The expected flood of cheap goods from China, on top of a recent slowdown in inflation, is among several reasons the central bank felt confident enough to cut interest rates this week. In an economy like Australia's that manufactures very few finished products domestically, Taobao is finding new markets outside of its core Chinese-speaking consumer base. "I don't shop a lot, but if I do buy something, I will buy it online... If I can get it cheaper through Taobao, 100% I'll buy from them," said Jodi Clarke, a therapist in Melbourne, whose first purchase on the site included three look-alike Hermes Kelly bags for A$129 ($83.24). China's factories are rushing to reach more new markets overseas as the domestic economy slows, with U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs making it much more difficult to access the U.S., the world's largest consumer market. Frederic Neumann, chief Asian economist and co-head of global research at HSBC, said the expansion of Chinese e-commerce platforms overseas will intensify disinflation pressures, especially for consumer goods. "What the world is facing is a growing inflation divergence between the U.S. and other economies, with prices climbing in the former, and stabilising, if not outright declining, in the latter," said Neumann. While the flood of Chinese goods has raised alarms in manufacturing-dependent countries in Southeast Asia, Australia's overwhelming reliance on imports for many household items diminishes most such concerns. The Reserve Bank of Australia judges recent global trade developments to be disinflationary in net terms for Australia, one of the reasons it opened the door to more interest rate cuts on Tuesday. "Because Australia has a higher share of Chinese products in most parts of its import basket compared with other economies, the redirection of tariff-affected exports is likely to place additional downward pressure on Australian import prices, especially in the short term," the RBA said in its quarterly economic update this week. Australia bought a whopping A$110 billion of goods last year from China, easily its biggest trading partner. Chinese trade data for April showed exports to Australia jumped 9% from the previous month while shipments to the U.S. tumbled almost 18%. The RBA also noted cheap goods from China are unlikely to displace much Australian production and could even benefit industries reliant on imported inputs, such as clothing retailers. Goldman Sachs has estimated the redirection of Chinese goods into Australia, particularly in toys, furniture and clothing, could subtract 20-50 basis points from headline inflation over the next year or two. Those forecasts were made before China and the U.S. agreed to pause steep tariffs this month. Headline consumer price inflation held at 2.4% in the first quarter, comfortably within the RBA's target band of 2% to 3% and having come down from the 7.8% peak in late 2022. INCREASED COMPETITION Chinese e-commerce platforms are not completely new in Australia, with Temu already capturing big chunks of online sales, but their broadening appeal to Australians comes as they wrestle with lingering cost-of-living pressures. Singapore-based online fast-fashion retailer Shein, which sells clothes made in China, earlier this month held a pop-up store in Sydney and launched its first Australia-focused brand, Aralina. Alibaba had been a low-key cross-border player until last year when it started investing aggressively to boost global sales, including in Australia. Its main competitor also launched its Australian site in March. The push was initially designed to reach more Chinese buyers overseas, but Trump's tariff chaos thrust those e-commerce sites into the spotlight, with Taobao now offering an English version of the app. Taobao is already promoting sales in English for the annual "618" shopping festival on June 18, one of China's largest. It offers free shipping to Australia for clothes worth more than 249 yuan ($34.25). Consumers interviewed by Reuters say Taobao's app is easy to use and has translation functions to help communicate with sellers. High shipping costs can sometimes be a hindrance, but in some cases it is still cheaper than buying locally. The site's growing profile in English-speaking communities has elevated the "Taobao haul" trend on TikTok in markets like Australia. Australian consumer Jessica Cox shared her first Taobao experience on social media, which included purchases of imitations of AirPods Max headphones. She also bought a Dyson vacuum cleaner and New Balance shoes, which were on the way. "I thought I'd give it a try as a lot of people were saying they are pretty close to being mirror fakes," she said. "I thought, what do I have to lose?" ($1 = 1.5497 Australian dollars)
Reuters
23-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Australia's new haul of Chinese online goods helps tame inflation
SYDNEY, May 23 (Reuters) - As businesses globally fret about sky-high U.S. tariffs reviving rampant inflation, in Australia, the redirection of cheap Chinese goods is expected to provide relief for consumers and policymakers worried about stubborn cost pressures. Alibaba's Taobao and are the latest Chinese e-commerce platforms to enter the Australian market, seeking to tap into the bargain-starved country's appetite for online deals. The expected flood of cheap goods from China, on top of a recent slowdown in inflation, is among several reasons the central bank felt confident enough to cut interest rates this week. In an economy like Australia's that manufactures very few finished products domestically, Taobao is finding new markets outside of its core Chinese-speaking consumer base. "I don't shop a lot, but if I do buy something, I will buy it online... If I can get it cheaper through Taobao, 100% I'll buy from them," said Jodi Clarke, a therapist in Melbourne, whose first purchase on the site included three look-alike Hermes Kelly bags for A$129 ($83.24). China's factories are rushing to reach more new markets overseas as the domestic economy slows, with U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs making it much more difficult to access the U.S., the world's largest consumer market. Frederic Neumann, chief Asian economist and co-head of global research at HSBC, said the expansion of Chinese e-commerce platforms overseas will intensify disinflation pressures, especially for consumer goods. "What the world is facing is a growing inflation divergence between the U.S. and other economies, with prices climbing in the former, and stabilising, if not outright declining, in the latter," said Neumann. While the flood of Chinese goods has raised alarms in manufacturing-dependent countries in Southeast Asia, Australia's overwhelming reliance on imports for many household items diminishes most such concerns. The Reserve Bank of Australia judges recent global trade developments to be disinflationary in net terms for Australia, one of the reasons it opened the door to more interest rate cuts on Tuesday. "Because Australia has a higher share of Chinese products in most parts of its import basket compared with other economies, the redirection of tariff-affected exports is likely to place additional downward pressure on Australian import prices, especially in the short term," the RBA said in its quarterly economic update this week. Australia bought a whopping A$110 billion of goods last year from China, easily its biggest trading partner. Chinese trade data for April showed exports to Australia jumped 9% from the previous month while shipments to the U.S. tumbled almost 18%. The RBA also noted cheap goods from China are unlikely to displace much Australian production and could even benefit industries reliant on imported inputs, such as clothing retailers. Goldman Sachs has estimated the redirection of Chinese goods into Australia, particularly in toys, furniture and clothing, could subtract 20-50 basis points from headline inflation over the next year or two. Those forecasts were made before China and the U.S. agreed to pause steep tariffs this month. Headline consumer price inflation held at 2.4% in the first quarter, comfortably within the RBA's target band of 2% to 3% and having come down from the 7.8% peak in late 2022. Chinese e-commerce platforms are not completely new in Australia, with Temu already capturing big chunks of online sales, but their broadening appeal to Australians comes as they wrestle with lingering cost-of-living pressures. Singapore-based online fast-fashion retailer Shein, which sells clothes made in China, earlier this month held a pop-up store in Sydney and launched its first Australia-focused brand, Aralina. Alibaba had been a low-key cross-border player until last year when it started investing aggressively to boost global sales, including in Australia. Its main competitor ( opens new tab also launched its Australian site in March. The push was initially designed to reach more Chinese buyers overseas, but Trump's tariff chaos thrust those e-commerce sites into the spotlight, with Taobao now offering an English version of the app. Taobao is already promoting sales in English for the annual "618" shopping festival on June 18, one of China's largest. It offers free shipping to Australia for clothes worth more than 249 yuan ($34.25). Consumers interviewed by Reuters say Taobao's app is easy to use and has translation functions to help communicate with sellers. High shipping costs can sometimes be a hindrance, but in some cases it is still cheaper than buying locally. The site's growing profile in English-speaking communities has elevated the "Taobao haul" trend on TikTok in markets like Australia. Australian consumer Jessica Cox shared her first Taobao experience on social media, which included purchases of imitations of AirPods Max headphones. She also bought a Dyson vacuum cleaner and New Balance shoes, which were on the way. "I thought I'd give it a try as a lot of people were saying they are pretty close to being mirror fakes," she said. "I thought, what do I have to lose?" ($1 = 1.5497 Australian dollars)
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Analysis-Australia's new haul of Chinese online goods helps tame inflation
By Stella Qiu SYDNEY (Reuters) -As businesses globally fret about sky-high U.S. tariffs reviving rampant inflation, in Australia, the redirection of cheap Chinese goods is expected to provide relief for consumers and policymakers worried about stubborn cost pressures. Alibaba's Taobao and are the latest Chinese e-commerce platforms to enter the Australian market, seeking to tap into the bargain-starved country's appetite for online deals. The expected flood of cheap goods from China, on top of a recent slowdown in inflation, is among several reasons the central bank felt confident enough to cut interest rates this week. In an economy like Australia's that manufactures very few finished products domestically, Taobao is finding new markets outside of its core Chinese-speaking consumer base. "I don't shop a lot, but if I do buy something, I will buy it online... If I can get it cheaper through Taobao, 100% I'll buy from them," said Jodi Clarke, a therapist in Melbourne, whose first purchase on the site included three look-alike Hermes Kelly bags for A$129 ($83.24). China's factories are rushing to reach more new markets overseas as the domestic economy slows, with U.S. President Donald Trump's sweeping tariffs making it much more difficult to access the U.S., the world's largest consumer market. Frederic Neumann, chief Asian economist and co-head of global research at HSBC, said the expansion of Chinese e-commerce platforms overseas will intensify disinflation pressures, especially for consumer goods. "What the world is facing is a growing inflation divergence between the U.S. and other economies, with prices climbing in the former, and stabilising, if not outright declining, in the latter," said Neumann. While the flood of Chinese goods has raised alarms in manufacturing-dependent countries in Southeast Asia, Australia's overwhelming reliance on imports for many household items diminishes most such concerns. The Reserve Bank of Australia judges recent global trade developments to be disinflationary in net terms for Australia, one of the reasons it opened the door to more interest rate cuts on Tuesday. "Because Australia has a higher share of Chinese products in most parts of its import basket compared with other economies, the redirection of tariff-affected exports is likely to place additional downward pressure on Australian import prices, especially in the short term," the RBA said in its quarterly economic update this week. Australia bought a whopping A$110 billion of goods last year from China, easily its biggest trading partner. Chinese trade data for April showed exports to Australia jumped 9% from the previous month while shipments to the U.S. tumbled almost 18%. The RBA also noted cheap goods from China are unlikely to displace much Australian production and could even benefit industries reliant on imported inputs, such as clothing retailers. Goldman Sachs has estimated the redirection of Chinese goods into Australia, particularly in toys, furniture and clothing, could subtract 20-50 basis points from headline inflation over the next year or two. Those forecasts were made before China and the U.S. agreed to pause steep tariffs this month. Headline consumer price inflation held at 2.4% in the first quarter, comfortably within the RBA's target band of 2% to 3% and having come down from the 7.8% peak in late 2022. INCREASED COMPETITION Chinese e-commerce platforms are not completely new in Australia, with Temu already capturing big chunks of online sales, but their broadening appeal to Australians comes as they wrestle with lingering cost-of-living pressures. Singapore-based online fast-fashion retailer Shein, which sells clothes made in China, earlier this month held a pop-up store in Sydney and launched its first Australia-focused brand, Aralina. Alibaba had been a low-key cross-border player until last year when it started investing aggressively to boost global sales, including in Australia. Its main competitor also launched its Australian site in March. The push was initially designed to reach more Chinese buyers overseas, but Trump's tariff chaos thrust those e-commerce sites into the spotlight, with Taobao now offering an English version of the app. Taobao is already promoting sales in English for the annual "618" shopping festival on June 18, one of China's largest. It offers free shipping to Australia for clothes worth more than 249 yuan ($34.25). Consumers interviewed by Reuters say Taobao's app is easy to use and has translation functions to help communicate with sellers. High shipping costs can sometimes be a hindrance, but in some cases it is still cheaper than buying locally. The site's growing profile in English-speaking communities has elevated the "Taobao haul" trend on TikTok in markets like Australia. Australian consumer Jessica Cox shared her first Taobao experience on social media, which included purchases of imitations of AirPods Max headphones. She also bought a Dyson vacuum cleaner and New Balance shoes, which were on the way. "I thought I'd give it a try as a lot of people were saying they are pretty close to being mirror fakes," she said. "I thought, what do I have to lose?" ($1 = 1.5497 Australian dollars) Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
